Uston v. Resorts International Hotel, Inc.
Facts
Kenneth Uston used a card-counting strategy in blackjack that, under the Commission's existing blackjack rules, increased his chances of winning. After a rule change restricting reshuffling improved the effectiveness of card counting, Resorts asked the Commission chairman whether any statute or regulation barred it from excluding professional card counters, and then barred Uston that same day. Resorts later adopted standards and a general policy for excluding card counters. Uston had not violated any Commission rule governing blackjack play.
Issue
Whether a licensed casino may exclude a patron from blackjack tables for card counting under either a common law right to exclude or the Casino Control Act. Also, whether owners of premises open to the public possess an absolute common law right to exclude patrons without good cause.
Rule
The Casino Control Act gives the Casino Control Commission exclusive authority to regulate the rules and methods of playing licensed casino games, and that authority precludes a casino from excluding a patron for playing under existing Commission rules in a way that improves his odds. More broadly, when property owners open premises to the public, their common law right to exclude is limited by the public's common law right of reasonable access; they may not exclude persons unreasonably, arbitrarily, or discriminatorily, though they may exclude those who disrupt operations or threaten security.
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